The following are how area members of Congress voted on key issues during the week ending March 28, 1986. There were no House votes last week.

SENATE

Senate narrowly rejects balanced budget amendment. Proponents of a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced federal budget lost yet another battle March 25 when the Republican-controlled Senate rejected the measure 66-34. A two-thirds majority - 67 if all Senators are present and voting - is required to pass a constitutional amendment.

The legislation would have required a balanced budget each year unless the House and Senate agreed to deficit spending or the United States was at war. The amendment would have taken effect at the conclusion of the Gramm-Rudman- Hollings deficit reduction law in 1991. The Senate passed a similar measure in 1982, but the legislation was later defeated in the House.

Backers of the amendment expressed frustration with what they called the fiscal irresponsibility shown by both the executive and legislative branches, and said the legislation was needed as a safeguard against future fiscal carelessness.

"The federal budget has been balanced one time in the past 25 years," said Howell Heflin, D-Ala. "The problem is deeper than individual resolve."

Opponents countered by saying that Congress should allow Gramm-Rudman- Hollin gs to run its course before attempting to impose a binding constitutional directive on the government. Congress must not load the Constitution down with unnecessary language, they argued.

"The Constitution is the embodiment of the most cherished principles of our people, our government and our common experience," declared Slade Gorton, R-Wash. "The Constitution is no place for congressional graffiti."

Aid to Nicaraguan rebels narrowly approved by Senate. The Senate breathed new life into President Reagan's proposal to give $100 million to the rebels fighting the Soviet-backed Nicaraguan government, voting 53-47 March 27 to approve the request. The bill now goes to the House, which defeated a similar proposal by 12 votes March 20. The Senate vote came days after Nicaraguan troops reportedly entered the neighboring country of Honduras in search of rebel bases in that country.

The legislation gives $25 million to the rebels - called "Contras" - immediately, but that money can only be used for non-aggressive purchases, such as food and defensive weapons like anti-aircraft missiles. The rest of the money will be held for 90 days while an attempt to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict is made. A proposal by the Democrats that was easily defeated would have offered $30 million in "non-lethal" aid for the Contras immediately, and would have delayed further military aid for six months while the United States negotiated directly with the Nicaraguan government.

Supporters argued that the Nicaraguan government will not negotiate without the threat of military force, and that a purely diplomatic course was naive. By arming the Contras, they said, the United States can slow the spread of communism in Central America. They also argued strongly against the Democrats' alternative, saying that Congress should not undercut the president on foreign policy.

Opponents said the president's plan ignores diplomatic solutions to the fighting, and will draw the United States deeper into the morass in Central America. When the Contras fail to overthrow the Nicaraguan government, they said, the administration will commit U.S. troops to the conflict.

"The question before the Senate is a question of war and peace. Will the administration commit to peace before it commits to war?" asked Jim Sasser, D-Tenn., who presented the Democrats' proposal. "I urge my colleagues, vote for a negotiated settlement before we let loose the dogs of war in Central America."